Pie and Pastry Bible (29 page)

EQUIPMENT

A 9-inch pie pan

Make the dough (page 30).

Remove the larger piece of dough from the refrigerator. If necessary, allow it to sit for about 10 minutes or until it is soft enough to roll.

Using a pastry cloth and sleeve rubbed with flour or two sheets of plastic wrap lightly sprinkled with flour, roll the dough
inch thick or less and large enough to cut a 13-inch circle. Use an expandable flan ring or a cardboard template and a sharp knife as a guide to cut out the circle. Transfer the dough to the pie pan. It should extend about ¾ inch past the side of the pie plate. Fold this dough under so that it is flush with the outer edge of the pie plate. Cover the pastry with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for a minimum of 30 minutes and a maximum of 3 hours.

In a medium bowl, stir together the sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Stir in the cherries along with any juice and the almond extract. Allow the mixture to macerate for a minimum of 10 minutes and a maximum of 3 hours.

Stir the cherry mixture well and transfer it to the pie shell.

Roll the remaining smaller piece of dough into an oval 10½ inches by 8 inches wide (and about 1/16 inch thick). Using a ruler and pastry jagger, cut ten ¾-inch strips.

To create a woven lattice decoration (see page 16), arrange half the strips evenly over the cherries. Gently curve back every other strip a little past the center and place another strip perpendicular on top. Uncurve the strips so that they lie flat on top of the perpendicular strip. Working in the same direction, curve back the strips that were not curved back the first time. Lay a second perpendicular strip on
top and uncurve the strips. Continue in this manner with a third perpendicular strip, curving back the strips that were curved back the first time. Apply the remaining 2 strips to the other side of the pie, starting toward the center and working toward the edge. Remember always to alternate the strips that are curved back so that the strips weave in and out.

Use sharp scissors to trim the strips to a ½-inch overhang. Moisten the dough under each strip with water and tuck the overhang under the bottom crust border, pressing down to make it adhere.

For the optional glaze, lightly beat the egg yolk and cream together. Brush it on the lattice and border. If time allows, refrigerate the pie for 1 hour, lightly covered with plastic wrap, to keep the crust from shrinking when it bakes.

Preheat the oven to 425°F. at least 20 minutes before baking. Set an oven rack at the lowest level and place a baking stone or baking sheet on it before preheating.

Set the pie directly on the baking stone and bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until the filling is
thickly
bubbling all over and the center is slightly puffed. Cover the edges with a foil ring (see page 19) after 15 minutes of baking. If the lattice starts to become too dark toward the last 10 minutes of baking, cover it lightly with a piece of foil with a vent hole in the center.

Cool the pie on a rack for at least 3 hours before serving.

VARIATIONS

FRUIT PERFECT™ CHERRY PIE
2 jars (13.5 ounces each) Fruit Perfect Cherries (see page 639), 1 tablespoon cornstarch (0.3 ounce/9.5 grams), 1 tablespoon water, and ¼ cup sugar (1.75 ounces/50 grams). Empty the cherries, with their thickened juices, into a medium bowl. In small bowl, stir together the cornstarch and water to dissolve the cornstarch. Gently and evenly stir this mixture into the cherries with the sugar. Bake as for Cherry Lattice Pie, but at 400°F. for 30 to 35 minutes.

DESIGNER CHERRY PIE
Make enough pastry for a 2-crust 9-inch pie. Prebake the bottom crust (see page 18). Instead of making a lattice crust, roll the remaining dough out
inch thick and use a sharp knife to cut out about 18 leaf shapes, 3 inches long. Drape them over little clumps of aluminum foil set on a baking sheet. Brush them with the egg glaze if desired and bake them at 425°F. for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden. Set them aside.

You will need to increase the filling by one and a third: Use 2 pounds sour cherries (4½ cups pitted/26 ounces/737 grams), 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons sugar (8 ounces/227 grams) 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch (1 ounce/31 grams), a pinch of salt, and a generous ¼ teaspoon almond extract.

Place all of the above ingredients except for the almond extract in a nonreactive medium saucepan and allow them to sit for about 10 minutes or until the cherries exude enough juice to moisten the sugar. Stir gently until evenly mixed and bring to a full boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Lower the heat and simmer for 1 minute or until the juices thicken and become translucent, stirring gently. Remove from the heat and stir in the almond extract.

Pour the cherry mixture into the prebaked pie shell. Place a foil ring (see page 19) on the pie and bake in a preheated 400°F. oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until bubbling all over. Remove to a rack and while the pie is still hot, arrange the reserved pastry leaves over the cherries.

CHERRY PIELETS
The filling for this recipe is enough to make 5 individual 4¼-inch pies. You will need enough dough for a two-crust pie, divided into 5 pieces. Roll each piece into a 7½-inch circle (1/16 inch thick). Reroll the scraps for the lattice 1/16 inch thick into an oval 6 inches long and cut thirty ½-inch-wide by 6-inch-long strips. Use 6 strips for each little pie. Proceed as for the standard 9-inch pie, baking the pielets for 25 to 35 minutes or until the juices thickly bubble. Cover the edges with a foil ring after 15 minutes of baking to prevent overbrowning.

EQUIPMENT

Five mini 4¼-inch pie pans

STORE

Room temperature, up to 2 days.

POINTERS FOR SUCCESS

Sour cherries start to deteriorate very quickly after picking, especially if the stems have been removed. They freeze magnificently, however, but should be prepared for freezing and frozen as soon as possible for the best quality. To freeze cherries for future pies, pit them, saving all the juices, add ¼ cup sugar for each 3½ cups (20 ounces/567 grams) of cherries, and freeze in glass canning jars or heavy storage containers. In a freezer that maintains a temperature below 0°F., they will last for 3 years or even longer. (I have some that are still good after 6 years! After 2 years, their color will gradually fade. To restore it, add ¼ teaspoon red food color with the rest of the ingredients.)

When ready to bake a pie, defrost the cherries until they separate. Empty them into a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients, remembering that you have already added ¼ cup of sugar. Allow them to sit until they have thawed and the sugar and thickener have formed a syrup from the defrosting cherry juices and dissolved completely. (If any cherries are still frozen, parts of the pie may overcook before the filling has thickened evenly.)

A large heavy hairpin is the ideal cherry pitter. Insert the looped end into the stem end, hook it around the pit, and pull it out.

If you have a very sweet tooth, you can use a total of 1 cup of sugar.